Falling in Vice
by Veronica The Mischievous
Summary: Sweet as honey, as corrosive as acid, vices can truly be strange habits. A vice can reveal the unexpected in a person, what will Barnaby learn when he stumbles upon one of Kotetsu's guilty pleasures?


**Title:** Falling in Vice  
**Rating:** PG  
**Word Count:** 2380  
**Pairing:** Kotetsu/Tomoe, Barnaby + Kotetsu  
**Topic:** Vice  
**Type:** Prompt fic  
**Genre:** General  
**Disclaimer:** I don't own anything from Tiger and Bunny. Tiger and Bunny belong to Sunrise and their respective creators.  
**VTM:** Doing some practice with writing prompts. This prompt being "vice". It's not my best work but it was nice practice and I got to work with something a little different.

-o-o-

Kotetsu's eyes lazily opened his mind still in a fog from the long night before. He slowly became more aware as his mind started to clear and pull him back to reality. He sucked in a deep breath that escaped him as a yawn. As he blinked the sleep away from his eyes he found himself staring at thick, long ebony hair.

Kotetsu felt his heart skip a beat and hesitated before he reached out to the figure lying next to him. He carefully combed his fingers through the woman's hair. He could feel her shiver a little as his fingertips glided gently along her pale, soft skin. Emboldened by the fact that she was actually there Kotetsu moved closer. He wrapped an arm around her from behind and lovingly planted a gentle kiss on the back of her head.

It was the scent of her perfume that immediately broke the illusion. It had a rich sweet and spicy smell; it must have been a classic brand that was no doubt expensive. Tomoe preferred more subtle scents that were relaxing, like lavender or lilacs. Kotetsu eased his hold on the woman as his memories caught up with him. He couldn't help but smile a little as he felt muscles ache from their 'fun' the night before.

The woman began to stir in his hold, she turned a little and looked at him from over her shoulder and smiled. "Good morning, Kotey."

"Mornin' Tamera..." Kotetsu greeted, he gave a small smile in return. "Want some breakfast?"

"Ooh, what's on the menu, chef?" she joked with a laugh. Aside from her hair and smile Tamera was nothing like Tomoe. Her face was more fox-like and her eyes were full of mischief.

Kotetsu raised an eyebrow at the question and took a moment to think. "Well, I can make coffee, pancakes, microwavable waffles, or the old favorite fried rice."

"You know, it's not exactly normal to eat fried rice for breakfast." Tamera pointed out. She gave a playful smirk and turned over to face him. "But you're fried rice is splendid so I'd love some. I got a long day today and I could use something for energy." She gave him a small wink and then a quick peck on the forehead.

Kotetsu started to sit up and winced as he felt a tender ache flare up in one of his stomach muscles. A small grunt escaped him as his hand went to nurse it. "Damn, I don't get this sore from my workouts."

"Well, I guess you could consider our sessions together as extra 'endurance training'."

A small snort escaped Kotetsu and erupted into laughter. He shook his head and opened his mouth to comment but at last minute decided against it. "Time to make breakfast."

He climbed out of bed, wincing as he moved and picked up his pants from the floor and reached for his crumpled tank top. It was snagged up before he could get his hands on it. Kotetsu looked up and was met by the woman's fiery eyes.

"No need for a shirt so early, I rather like seeing my marks on you." An impish smile flashed across Tamera's lips. "Besides, I rather like your scars; I think they give your body a little character." She reached out and lightly traced her finger along an old scar on his torso.

They never talked about Kotetsu's line of work. It was one of the agreements they had made when they started their little arrangement. Though Tamera was curious she understood the need of confidentiality from her own line of work. Kotetsu was a surprisingly private man, even with his habit of meddling. He was so willing to help others but wished to keep them at arm's length when it came to his own troubles. Tamera had to keep reminding herself to not try analyzing him too much. He wasn't one of her clients.

Kotetsu's face went a little red at the mention of the old fading scars that decorated his body. Each one a having there own story, each a reminder of the dangerous side of being a hero. But Tamera didn't seem to mind them. The fact that she even found them interesting helped him feel less self conscious about them.

Soon enough Kotetsu was half clothed and down stairs fixing breakfast for the two of them. He smiled a little to himself when he heard Tamera making her way down stairs. She turned on the TV and took a seat on the couch, wearing Kotetsu's green shirt from the day before.

"And here is your fried rice, madam." Kotetsu said as he brought their plates over.

"Hmm, the service here is a bit slow..." Tamera took the plate and scooted over a little as Kotetsu took his seat. "I could always whip the staff into shape."

"Ha! No whips allowed, not after that last time."

"Oh come on Kotey, that wasn't a whip, that was a riding crop. There's a difference!"

"I don't care. _This_ horsey isn't having _any_ of that. Nope." Kotetsu shot back. He grinned when Tamera erupted in laughter

Kotetsu's smile faded when he had just caught a familiar sound coming from upstairs. It was the ring tone of his cell phone. He grabbed the remote and turned down the TV, he asked Tamera to be quiet and he hurried his way upstairs. It took a little searching but Kotetsu managed to find his phone under the discarded clothing that littered his room.

He answered the phone before he could look at the caller ID. "Hello, this is Kotetsu. What's up?"

"Kotetsu?" an all too familiar voice answered. It was Barnaby and from the sound of the background noises it seemed he was walking outdoors. "You're already awake?"

"B-Bunny? Hey, how are ya?" he checked the time on the clock by his bed. He still had more than enough time before had to go in to work.

"I was informed that we have an emergency meeting. Something about an event that we were supposed to go to has been changed at the last minute." Barnaby explained. The background noises faded as it sounded like he was entering a building. I'm on my way to pick you up."

"Oh..." Kotetsu closed his eyes and quietly cursed under his breath. "Uh, um...No need to bother I can drive myself. I'm already awake so I'll just get ready."

Barnaby was quiet for a short moment. One could practically feel the building suspicion in that silence. "Nonsense, I'm already close by, it'll save you some gas."

"How far away are you?" Kotetsu's answer came in the form of a brisk knock at his apartment door. "Damn it..."

He grabbed up his tank top from the bed and pulled it on as he hurried his way down stairs. The knocking began to sound impatient. Kotetsu signaled to Tamera to stay where she was and went to answer the door.

"Bunny! Hey! Look, give me a few minutes to get ready, alright? You kinda caught me off guard." Kotetsu spoke up before Barnaby could make any comment. He was about to shut the door again but Barnaby stepped in the way before he could. "Hey! What are you doing?!"

"You sounded strange on the phone; I was worried." Barnaby said. He frowned but looked more concerned than angry. His eyes were on Kotetsu, taking in whatever details he could find. "Are those...bruises?"

Kotetsu opened his mouth to answer but he couldn't get the words out. He closed his mouth and nibbled nervously on his bottom lip. "Um, sort of? They're probably hickies and bite marks."

Barnaby canted his head to the side and had a confused look painted across his face. "What? But where did those come from?"

"Hey there boys, I have to head out or else I'm going to be late for my own job."

Both Kotetsu and Barnaby looked back and saw Tamera walking towards them. She still wore Kotetsu's shirt and sported it as if it were some kind of trophy. Barnaby turned and gave his partner a questioning look.

"Well now, who is this handsome fellow?" Tamera asked as she looked Barnaby over appraisingly.

Kotetsu was at a loss for words from the awkwardness of the situation. He took a deep breath and forced himself to speak. "Uh, well, this is my friend and partner, Barnaby. Barnaby, this is my neighbor, Tamera."

"Barnaby, hmm? Well, aren't you a tasty looking thing?" Tamera said with a sly smile. "You're cute but sadly also way too young for my liking."

Barnaby looked between the two of them, still confused. Looking at Tamera he had to admit that she was a beautiful woman. At first glance he could have sworn that she looked a lot like Kotetsu's wife from the pictures he had seen of her. Except the eyes, they were all wrong; they were more hungry and impish.

Tamera walked past Barnaby and stepped out of Kotetsu's apartment. "I'm heading off but this is coming with me. I'll return it to you later tonight, Kotey."

"Oh, so it's going to be one of _those_ weeks?" Kotetsu said with a short laugh.

"You know it! Ciao for now!" Tamera smirked, winked at him and made her way to the apartment across the hall.

Kotetsu reached over and closed the door. He then looked at Barnaby who obviously wanted some answers. "So, uh...I'll get ready for work."

"Wait." Barnaby stepped right in front of him. "Is that your girlfriend?"

"No, she's just my neighbor. She's a bit _bold_ but she's a nice lady, she's a therapist." Kotetsu explained. He could tell from the look on Barnaby's face that he wasn't satisfied with that answer. He rubbed the back of his neck and gave a deep sigh before he continued, "We get together once or twice a week for rough sex. We're not dating, neither of us are looking for love, we _are_ sort of friends though."

Barnaby blinked, Kotetsu's answer made sense but was still a little confusing. Her face was still clear in his mind. "She looks a little like-"

Kotetsu cut Barnaby off before he could finish, not wanting to hear him say it. "Yeah, I know. She knows too. We talked about it when we made our arrangement."

"Kotetsu that's...I...I don't think that really makes matters any better." Barnaby's voice was full of concern. He wasn't sure what he could say, the situation was pretty awkward. It was hard to admit that maybe, even with how close they were, he still didn't know Kotetsu as well as he thought he did. "Are you sure you can trust her? You _are_ a hero after all, that kind of thing can compromise your integrity."

"Yeah, I know that. I can trust her though; we've been doing this for quite a while. Tamera can be a little out there but she's been good to me." Kotetsu said with a small, weary smile. "We're just two friends that like to enjoy our vices."

Barnaby opened his mouth to speak but found that he didn't know what to say. Did he even have a right to say anything? He did intrude on Kotetsu's privacy, even if it was out of concern. Perhaps his partner's habit off meddling had begun to rub off on him.

"I'll meet you outside; I'm going to get dressed." Kotetsu abruptly said as he turned around and walked further into his apartment.

Barnaby lingered by the door for a moment, still feeling a little awkward. He turned and left and closed the door behind him. As he walked down the apartment building's hallway he pondered on how much they really knew about each other. Of course they were close, they were even good friends, but there were still things that they held back from each other.

Why did it bother him so much? That thought was what stuck Barnaby the most. Kotetsu was entitled to some privacy just as much as he was. He was an adult for god's sake, ten years older than him; he could make his own choices. But still, the situation left a bad taste in his mouth.

Barnaby was waiting outside; his thoughts still swirled around in his head. From mental images of Tamera's infectious smile to Kotetsu's aversion from looking him in the eye. His thoughts were interrupted when he heard the door to the apartment building open and close.

Barnaby looked back and blinked when he saw Kotetsu. At first glance he seemed completely normal, he was dressed and ready for work. He even seemed to have his usual 'typical Kotetsu' demeanor. The only thing that was different was that he had a cigarette between his lips.

"You smoke too?" Barnaby asked.

"Very rarely. I'll usually have a smoke after a night with Tamera or if I'm really stressed." Kotetsu admitted. He walked down the front steps and joined his partner on the sidewalk. "It's just another one of my vices."

"How many 'vices' do you have?" Barnaby asked.

Kotetsu took drag on his cigarette and breathed out the smoke. "Do you _really_ want to know?"

Barnaby couldn't be too sure if that a legitimate question or just sarcasm. He leaned away from the smoke. "Let's just get going, old man. And you're putting that out before you get in my car."

"Fair enough." Kotetsu said with a small nod. He followed Barnaby as he led the way; he took one last drag on his cigarette and then flicked it aside.

-The End-


End file.
